Roku 3 review: A set-top box to trump all other set-top boxes

With over 750 channels available and a brand new interface, what's not to love?

Roku is no stranger to set-top boxes—we’d even go so far as to say that the company has managed to set the standard for what these little streaming devices should offer. It's the content partnerships that have made the devices so successful—consumers have a great deal of choice when it comes to streaming, something that the Apple TV and even the WDTV Play are still catching up on.

To be fair, Roku, Apple, and Western Digital all offer slightly different things. Roku is especially made for those who want to stream a variety of content from third-parties, while the other two act more as a mediator for users to play content they already own while still having access to some of the more widely used third parties. Regardless, the Roku has been successful in its model, and the Roku 3 continues in the company's tradition of delivering an affordable, feature-filled streaming device.

New look, same great offerings

The Roku 3, available now for $99.99, calls itself the “most powerful, responsive streaming box” that Roku has ever built. It features an ARM-based processor and other components all wrapped inside a shiny, hockey-puck shaped chassis. At 3.5 × 3.5 × 1 inches, it’s a bit smaller than the second- and third-generation Apple TV and Western Digital's Play set-top box. It also feels a bit like a paperweight, but that helps keep the puck from sliding around in your entertainment center.

The Roku 3 features a USB port on the side...

And an Ethernet and HDMI port in the back, as well as a microSD slot.

It also comes with a remote and ear buds that can plug in to the remote.

On the back, the Roku 3 features an Ethernet port, HDMI port, microSD slot, and power plug. It's 802.11 a/b/g/n compatible, with WEP, WPA, and WPA2 support. On the side, there’s a handy slot for a flash drive or portable hard drive. The Roku 3 no longer features any RCA outputs as past iterations have, so users with older televisions will want to check out the older versions of the Roku.

The Roku 3's new interface is smooth and fluid, not to mention easy to use.

The Roku’s interface underwent a major overhaul, and it no longer features the static, flip-through icon carousel of older iterations. Users can see more channels at a glance and change the background theme of the interface, and there is a nice transition effect while perusing through menus. Overall, the new interface is more user friendly than older versions of the Roku, as menus are easier to navigate through. Still, some of the "channels" haven’t evolved along with Roku and are still sporting dated interfaces.

The Roku 3 also allows users to search for content across different services. Say you’re aching to watch the BBC’s Sherlock: simply type the name into the search option on the Home page and Roku will retrieve the different services that are streaming it—a helpful option for users who might have subscriptions to Netflix, Hulu Plus, and even Amazon Instant Video but aren't sure which service has the most episodes to offer. It’s only a shame that there's no voice control like on the Xbox via the Kinect, because the keyboard input via the remote is a bit slow.

Roku will also save recent searches.

You can search for what you want to watch by title and Roku will show where it's streaming.

The new interface is currently exclusive to the Roku 3, but the company has said that it will push out the update to its latest generation of Roku boxes at the end of April.

The remote

The Roku 3 remote has a headphone jack that lets you listen to your content without disturbing others around you.

The Roku remote is a notable hardware update itself. It hooks up to the Roku 3 via Wi-Fi Direct, so you don't have to point it at the box to change the channel. It also features a headphone jack and volume buttons, so you can listen to a movie or music without disrupting others in the room. You could probably use the Roku remote as a music player around the house, too, if your place is small enough. It doesn't have the greatest range, however—I left the Roku 3 plugged into the television on the second floor of my house while it was streaming Spotify, but it began to break up when I took the remote downstairs.

Flip the remote over to use it as a game controller.

The remote has Wii-like motion sensing features, though Roku's game offerings are slim pickings, and the only game that really made use of the motion sensing was Angry Birds Space. I would have also preferred to have rubber the buttons and OK button surrounded by the directional pad rather than right below it. The solid buttons feel very different from other remotes, and it was a bit of an adjustment trying to browse left and right with the new plastic directional buttons.

Playback

Roku features a variety of channels available for download.

Roku has managed to become a hub for some of the most widely used streaming services—about 750 and counting. Like a television, Roku offers channels that are essentially apps that link to a streaming URL. Any channel you download or subscribe to is linked to your Roku account so that it's available when you move devices. Some of the major players include Netflix, Hulu Plus, HBO Go, Amazon Instant Video, Amazon Cloud Player, Spotify, and Pandora. It also offers the live TV application from Time Warner Cable. Those interested in cooking can tune in to All Recipes and Recipe.TV, and those looking for educational content can watch TEDTalks and NASA TV. There’s programming for children via the Disney app, and sports fans can watch MLB.TV and purchase a premium subscription to watch their favorite teams play. If you’re especially curious or new to Roku, the company offers a complete listing of its available channels online.

The only major service that Roku doesn't offer is an official YouTube channel, apparently a years-old issue that does not yet have a resolution. There are a couple workarounds to this, however. Adding private channels like Twonky to beam YouTube content from your Android or iOS device to the Roku 3 seems to work fine.

The Roku 3 also allows users to stream their own content. With a flash drive or portable hard drive, users can play back digital media files including MP4, MKV, AAC, MP3, JPEG, and PNG files, though an application is required for this functionality to work. It does not support AVI, nor does it support DLNA playback, but users can set up a slight workaround by connecting to an existing Plex Media Server with the app available in the Roku channel store. You can also use the microSD card to sync Roku channels that are over 50MB, though it will have to be formatted before you can use it.

The app

The Roku app—available for iOS and Android—is probably my favorite thing about this set-top box. As an Android user, I feel like I don't always get first pick of the litter when it comes to app interfaces and features. Compared to the WDTV Android app for its streaming devices, the Roku app is a real winner. It’s easy to use, immediately responsive, and the keyboard works properly within other applications. It displays all of your downloaded channels at a glance, allows you to launch a channel by speaking its name, downloads other apps, and pushes content from your smartphone to the Roku itself, though it only supports photos and music.

Enlarge/ Get an at-a-glance view at your apps and launch them from here.

Enlarge/ Cycle through the different Roku devices linked to your account.

Enlarge/ The Roku app features all the same controls as the physical remote.

Should you get it?

If you happen to have a first-generation Roku in the house, you will definitely want to consider passing that off to another family member—or shoving it in another room—and securing one of these. If you've just recently adopted a Roku into your home, don't fret—you'll get the new user interface soon enough. However, the Roku 3 feels faster than its predecessors rather than feeling like an old dog with new tricks, as some of the older models sometimes did. While previous hardware updates felt incremental, the Roku 3 is a monumental leap forward for the company. It’s still a shame that the Roku 3 has such limited options for locally stored files, though; users with a hoard of content ready to be watched may want to consider the WDTV Play for this reason alone, despite its slim app offerings. Apple users and those who are linked to the Apple ecosystem may be more inclined to stick with the Apple TV, but they should at least consider the Roku 3 as a TV companion for “other rooms.”

Those looking to ditch cable and go full streaming should consider the Roku 3 as a great way to do just that. All of the available channels and options to pay for premium content ensure that you’ll get that same television experience without having to pay for all those channels you don’t want, and with the Roku 3's affordability, you can easily buy one for every television.

Good

A ridiculously large library of channels available for download (some are free and some require subscriptions)

New interface is fast, intuitive

Search feature allows users to peruse content on various services at once

Can listen to content via headphones for quieter viewing or listening to music

Bad

Playback is limited to very specific files

Ugly

Doesn’t support DLNA, despite the fact that it hooks into a home network

Florence Ion / Florence was a former Reviews Editor at Ars, with a focus on Android, gadgets, and essential gear. She received a degree in journalism from San Francisco State University and lives in the Bay Area.